About us

The Farm

A small farm in Northampton, Massachusetts specializing in Culinary and Medicinal Herbs, Hot Peppers & Greens of all kinds, including Wheat Grass for Pets.

Paradise City Micro-Farm is run by husband-and-wife-farmers Darren “Hawkeye” and Sheri Pierce. We started the farm in 2010.

Because we’re tight on space, we also rent land in Hadley. Both spots combined make about a half-acre that’s under our care.

Pretty small for a farm, right? More like a beautiful sprawling garden. To coax a big yield from our limited land, we’ve adopted techniques from modern urban farming and traditional French intensive gardening.

We also practice organic growing methods, never using any herbicides or pesticides! We love and are influenced by gardening from a permaculture perspective, food as medicine, and Traditional Western Herbalism. Our aim is to provide beautiful, healthful veg and herbs to our community, support wildlife and plant biodiversity in our garden, and leave the land we farm better than we found it.

You can find our herbs and produce at River Valley Co-op in Northampton during the growing season. Wheat Grass for Pets is available there year-round.

The Farmers

Hello! My name is Sheri and it’s always me here talking. Hawkeye isn’t much of a computer-person and is really busy with many other aspects of the farm. So, a little about us…

We both grew up in Western Massachusetts, in different small towns close to Northampton, and have lived in Northampton for about 25 years.

Hawkeye is a life-long gardener and former professional photographer who ran a portrait studio in Northampton for 27 years before his life was taken over by vegetables and fungi. He’s the main man in our veggie field.

(I envy his childhood experience of tending his own veggie patch with an English gardener mum as influence! Darren is his real name, by the way. A friend, local legend artist and musician Angry Johnny, gave him his nickname a long time ago from the character ‘Hawkeye Pierce’ on the t.v. show ‘M*A*S*H*‘.)

I came to gardening late, having grown up in a condo. I’d never even mown a lawn. My interest in plants began with studies in herbalism and aromatherapy. Learning about herbs ignited the desire to have my own herb garden and once my hands hit dirt, I was hooked. I manage the herb garden and handcraft the farm’s vegan skincare (formerly sold as “Paradise City Herbal”).

The Farm-made Skincare

Whether it’s sun and wind, digging in the garden, recycled office air, or city pollution that’s drying and stressing your skin, a little botanical care can help you feel good inside and out.

Made by Sheri at the micro-farm studio using our own herbs and veg as well as purchased certified organic herbs and veggies.

You’ll also find organic fair trade vegetable oils and butters as ingredients, as well as pure essential oils.

You won’t find any unnecessary or undesirable additives like synthetic fragrances and preservatives, or animal by-products. No palm oil either.

And of course, there’s never any animal testing! Every product is tested by happy volunteer humans.